In our daily rush and in a constant desire to produce, we often find ourselves multitasking, overworked, stressed out, pretending to be busy but not completing any task.
Below are six principles of task management to help you finish what you started.
Wondering which Principles to use in order to manage your tasks effectively?
1. The Pareto Principle
In 1906, Pareto realized that 20% of the population made up 80% of the revenue.
Then, he also noticed that these statistics also applied to work productivity. Indeed, in the workplace, 20% of the work produced generates 80% of the desired results.
That is why the Pareto Principle, better known as the 80/20 Principle or the Law of the Vital Few, encourages you to focus on essentials tasks, prioritize your activities, avoid those that are not beneficial to you and learn how to say no.
2. The Parkinson Principle
In 1958, Professor Cyril North-Cote Parkinson understood that a task will take up all the attributed time for it’s realization.
In ther words, the Parkinson Principle or the Dilatation Principle affirms that even if we have the ample time to achieve a task, we will use up all that given time.
That is why it is necessary to break up tasks into smaller ones and create your own deadlines.
3. The Law Of Murphy
According to Murphy, a US Air Force Engineer, a task always takes up more time than expected and that whatever could go wrong will go wrong.
Consequently, you must expect the unexpected, anticipate problems, add buffers between meetings, and overestimate the time needed on any task you take on even if you are good at it.
4. The Laborit Principle
If we listened to ourselves, there is no doubt in my mind that we would always do what makes us happy and complete the easiest tasks first.
We would therefore tackle the ones who require the least effort and neglect the hard and stressful ones.
However, handling the most difficult tasks first require extreme self-discipline but is the most rewarding task management strategy.
5. The Carlson Principle
In the 1950s, Professor Sune Carlson measured the number of time managers were being interrupted in average on a daily basis.
It turns out that they were interrupted every 20 minutes and were not able to effectively tend to their tasks because it took them time to focus back on their task at hand.
Carlson concluded that a task handled without interruptions or distractions is done faster than when it is done otherwise.
If you have an opening door policy, you may want to create strong boundaries to make time for your activities and reduce interruptions.
6. The Illich Principle
Ivan Illich, an ecologist thinker, states that beyond a certain amount of time spent on a task, our effectiveness and focus tend to diminish.
Due to that fact, it becomes vital to know and accept our own limitations, and to take regular breaks in order to recharge ourselves.
Last Words Of Advice!
The clutter on your desk also takes up mental space, create a sense of being busy and overwhelmed without you actually being productive.
It then becomes important to unclutter as much as possible and set things at their place.
Hope that I’ve helped you get it together on your way to leadership!
Don’t forget to like, share and leave a comment below.
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